11 Digital Marketers Who Are Innovating The Email Game

Email marketing is one of the most effective channels for digital marketers and entrepreneurs. In fact, it’s a top priority: 73 percent of marketers say email marketing is essential to growing their business.

When you think about it, email is really all about influence. We share content with our subscribers on a regular basis, weighing our influence into their decision to buy our product or service. And that’s why we believe following influencers is so important. The more you can learn and apply from them, the stronger your own email strategy will become.

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From content marketing gurus to growth hacking experts, see how these 11 digital marketers are using email in creative and innovative ways — and how you can apply their tactics to your own email strategy.

1. Nick Loper

What’s riskier: Starting your own business or relying solely on your 9-to-5 as your only source of income?

If you ask Nick Loper, it’s the latter.

Nick is an author, speaker and founder of Side Hustle Nation. An entrepreneur at heart, he’s been through the ups and downs of starting his own business and now shares those learnings with his growing community. His content is a must read for aspiring side-hustlers and entrepreneurs alike.

Why you should follow him:

Many people use their thank you page to share more information with new subscribers. Nick takes it one step further and uses it as an opportunity to learn more about his new subscribers with a survey. By following Nick, you’ll learn innovative ways to level up your email game, just like this one:

Leverage this tactic to learn more information about your own subscribers by including a survey or poll on your email thank you page. You’d be surprised how willing your new subscribers are likely to share. In return, you’ll have valuable insight into who your prospective customers are so you can tailor content to meet their needs (and make more sales in return).

2. Brian Dean

Backlinko is filled to the brim with actionable strategies that marketers can use to get more traffic to their websites and generate more leads. Brian, the brains behind it all, is a fantastic marketer who knows how to create and promote content that converts the right people.

He’s super active and engaged with his Twitter audience, making him a great resource for marketers who want to take their strategy to the next level.

Why you should follow him:

So why do over 105,000 people subscribe to his list? Because Brian knows the secret to profitability is to offer something of value to his audience. His email list serves as a source for link-building strategies, SEO tips, marketing case studies and more.

His post on the Content Upgrade should be required reading for any marketer looking to grow a strong, healthy list. When you follow him, you’ll get nothing but high quality, actionable content.

3. Henneke Duistermaat

Neil Patel calls her “the best business blogger” he knows. Copyblogger’s Brian Clark says you “should follow her every word.” She was also named one of “50 Incredible Women in Marketing to Follow” by Search Engine Journal. No big deal.

With a no-frills approach to marketing, Henneke knows how to write practical, useful content to attract more leads and get more business.

Connect with her on Twitter for 140-character marketing tips and links to some of her best content.

Why you should follow her:

Henneke is a killer copywriter and uses this skill to teach others how they can optimize their web and email copy. We love her friendly approach to email and how she encourages her subscribers to stay in touch.

Try using her approach and inviting feedback from your subscribers in your emails. Like a survey, this is an excellent way to learn more about what your prospects needs and wants are.

4. Noah Kagan

Noah is one the most recognizable names in the digital marketing industry — and for good reason.

He boasts an impressive resume, most notably for his roles at Facebook and Mint. He has since gone on to become the founder of Gambit, AppSumo and SumoMe, where he dishes out no-nonsense advice to marketers and entrepreneurs.

Follow him on Twitter for actionable growth-hacking strategies, product updates and interviews with other digital marketing experts on his podcast.

Why you should follow him:

We all know how important it is to send great content. But you need people to opt in before you can start sending them the goods. Take note of how Noah approaches sign up form copy to attract and convert prospective subscribers.

We especially love his use of social proof and how he shows off his personality, giving a taste of what to expect from his emails. This is a great way to start earning your subscriber’s trust from the moment they hit your sign up form.

5. Amy Schmittauer

Are you a vlogger looking to monetize your viewership with email? You need to follow Amy Schmittauer.

Amy has mastered the art of video marketing, and now she’s leveraging that expertise to show others how it’s done with her YouTube series and book, Vlog Like a Boss. Short and sweet is Amy’s schtick and it totally works. From her vlog to her emails, she connects with her audience on a personal level that keeps them coming back for more.

Why you should follow her:

Amy finds opportunities throughout her emails to connect with her subscribers on various social channels (because why stick to just one channel?). Take this example, where she includes a link for new subscribers to share that they just joined her list.

Why is this a smart approach? Because in return, she’ll be exposing her brand to her subscriber’s social networks, who are likely to have relevant interests. Try it for yourself and see just how effective it is!

6. Jeff Sieh

Jeff is the founder of Manly Pinterest Tips — and host of the podcast by the same name — where he helps guys get to know how to leverage the marketing power of Pinterest. He’s also the Pinterest Manager at Social Media Examiner, so you know he knows his stuff.

His podcast is packed with actionable insights for men (and women), from power players like Cynthia Sanchez, Guy Kawasaki, Rebekah Radice and more. Follow him on Twitter to make sure you never miss an episode.

Why you should follow him:

Since he is a Pinterest guru, Jeff is all about using visuals to attract prospects. He even leverages his primary platform of Pinterest to teach marketers how to use — what else — Pinterest to drive traffic back to their websites and capture new leads. If you want to learn more about marketing on Pinterest, he’s the guy to follow.

Try sharing an eye-catching and descriptive image on Pinterest with links back to your website or landing pages. It’s a great way to capture leads from relevant searches.

7. Derek Halpern

Derek Halpern believes in the 80/20 rule. That is, you should be spending 20 percent of your time creating content and 80 percent promoting the heck out of it.

It’s this approach that skyrocketed the growth of his website, Social Triggers, and helped him to build audiences for websites across the internet. He’s been featured in Fast Company and Entrepreneur and his podcast has hit number one on the iTunes Business section.

I guess one could say he has a knack for writing copy that converts. His feed is filled with inspiration and actionable tactics that you can apply to your own strategy.

Why you should follow him:

From his blog to his emails, Derek is all about showcasing the value. That’s why he’s mastered the art of writing sign up forms. Notice how he positions his newsletter as “free”? This is a subtle way of hinting at the massive value that you’ll receive at no cost when you join his newsletter.

Always be sure to explain why someone should subscribe to your list. What’s in it for them? The more valuable and descriptive you can be, the better.

8. Michael Stelzner

Michael is the founder of Social Media Examiner, host of the Social Media Marketing podcast, the man behind Social Media Marketing World, founder of the Social Media Marketing Society, author, talk show host… I think it’s safe to say he does it all.

He covers everything from social media and and digital marketing to why email marketing is the number one channel to improve your ROI.

Why you should follow him:

Despite his social media marketing background, Michael knows the value that email can provide. That’s why he emails his subscribers three times a week with the latest content from the Social Media Examiner blog and is a huge proponent of email marketing.

Take a cue from Michael and keep a regular cadence with your list. How often you send emails can have a huge impact on your results. While there’s no right or wrong answer for how often to send, being upfront about it with your audience so that there’s no surprises can significantly decrease your chances of unsubscribes (or worse, being marked as spam).

9. Laura Atkins

Word on the street is that Laura is the industry’s email deliverability expert. She’s also the founder of Word to the Wise, an email consulting firm specializing in email deliverability and program management.

Laura is serious about email deliverability and her Twitter feed serves up tips and strategies for marketers who want to make sure their messages get delivered.

Why you should follow her:

Because you want your emails to get delivered. The Word to the Wise blog is a great resource for staying in the know about changes and updates that could affect your deliverability.

10. Ben Settle

Ben is a great resource for marketers who want to amp up their email copywriting to convert more customers and make money with email marketing. People call him their “email marketing mentor” and he’s even been referred to as “the King of Email.” Pretty impressive, huh?

Not only does he specialize in email copywriting, but he teaches others how to do the same on his blog, which is a great resource for those who want to understand how buyer psychology plays a role in the marketing funnel.

Why you should follow him:

Sign up for his daily Email Playersnewsletter to see for yourself just how effective his copywriting is. You’ll also get a copy of his 24-Point Email Marketing Cheat Sheet, filled with subject lines, email openings and more profitable email tactics.

Try out a few of his email marketing hacks and see how they work for you.

11. John Corcoran

John teaches aspiring entrepreneurs how to build profitable business relationships and expand their networks. He knows the power of investing in email marketing firsthand — his list is the driving force behind monetizing his blog and business.

His expertise has been featured in Forbes, The Huffington Post and Newsweek (to name a few) and his content is aimed at helping business owners market themselves for maximum profitability.

Why you should follow him:

John knows his audience. His marketing approach is smart, straight-forward and offers valuable incentives to get the right people on his list.

Try creating offers with your audience in mind (like the one above) to convert more subscribers and grow your list in no time.

What’s next

While we’ve added links to Twitter, we highly recommend connecting with these incredible marketers through their other platforms. Check out their websites and blogs, and sign up for their emails to see firsthand why we chose them for our list.